Abstract of title for motor vehicles



C. C`. CHASE.

ABSTRACT 0F TlTLE FOR TvToToR VEHICLES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 20. I92I.

PatentedJune 6, 1922.

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ABSTRACT OF TITLE FOR MOTOR VEHITLES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 2o. 1921.

1,419,020. PanIedJi-Ine 6,1922.A

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C. C. CHASE.

ABSTRACT or TITLE FOR MoToR VEHICLES.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 20| 192|.

rammed June 6,1922.

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C. C. CHASE.

ABSTRACT 0F TITLE FORMOTOR VEHICLES.

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elf/L72 Tf APPLICATION FTLED MAY 20, |921.

` PatentedJune 6, 1922.

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earner orties.

Carin c. Cnnsn, or NEW Yon-inn. Y., Assienon To MOTOR` nnoonoine CORPORATION, or NEW YORK, n. n Conronnron or DELAWARE.'

ABSTRACT or Ti'TLn non, MOTOR vnnienns.

lyltlQl-li Application filed May 20,

'To all whom. it may comer/1l:

Be it known that l, CARL C. CHASE, a.citi- Zen of the- United States, and resident of New IYork city, in the county of New York andy State ot New York, have invented oer tain new `and yuseful inprovem'ents in Abstracts ot Title for Motor Vehicles, of which thetollowing is a 'specitication `lll'y'inven'tion relates to means lor sateguarding motor vehicles against theft, and isparticularly'directed to an improved combination and arrangement of documentary forms adapted to enable the owner et a mo# tor vehicle vrto'prove readily `his right thereto.

Under present conditions, the purchaser of "a used motor vehicle is unable to obtain conclusive proot that the 1 vehicle has not been stolen, and isv therefore compelled to run the risk of losing the vehicle to a 'former owner from 'whom it' was illegally. obtained.

A primary object of my'invention is to providemeans `whereby the pu Tchaser may obtain satisfactory evidence Oi the vendors title, thereby practically eliminating the Obviously. thisA arh rangement is calculated to reduce to a minimum the thet't Ot motor vehicles` owingv to thelpractical impossibility'for a thief to obtain the documents necessary. in accordance with myinvention. to prove title to thepnrchasf-ir.A A ycorollary object. therefore` is to prevent the theft of motor vehicles by radically increasing;`- the di'l'ticu'lty of disposing of' such vehicles.

Anotherobject is to provide a composite document which may be permanently retained' b v the successive Owners Ol a motor vehicle.' the document forming an abstract of title thereof' and furnishing on its lace the evidence' necessary to prove to a prospective purchaser thevendoi"s right to sell the vel-- hicle. y

l have also provided means whereby'the owneil oit the `vehiclemay notify a central Otlice of the company issuing'the abstract of any sale. lien or other transaction affecting' title to the vehicle; and l may furthermore provide means whereby such company/.Matter investigating the transaction of which it` is Specification of Letters Patent.

apprised, enter or have entered upon` v Patented June (i, 1922.

1921. Serial No. 471,085.

company to keep a permanent record Ott the A various transactions aeeting the vehicle. so that any alteration of the abstract can' readily be detected, and lost or mutilated ab stracts can be replaced.

Other Objects andadvantages of my in-l vention will be apparent from the following description, taken in connection with theaccompanying drawings, in which:

Fig'. l is a front View of one form of ab# stract with the cover turned back to expose' the lirst page, parts Ot the various sheets be ing` broken away to expose the underlying' sheets,

Fig. 2 is a plan view of the back of thek first page,

F 1g'. 3 is a plan view of a page of 'lien' and lien discharge notices,`

Fig. 4 is a plan view of a form of certilicate of ownership, f f

Fig. 5 iS a fragmentary*plan view of :i

portion oit the duplicate-bill o't' sale sheen and Fig'. 6 is a fragmentary view of a record and memorandum sheet.

Betere setting` forth thev details ot my invention. l willoutline the general features invention is adapted either for the insurance ot titleto motor vehicles or 'for the: reg-is-r tration or recording'ot ownership.` without' insurance; but tor convenience the forms herein idisclosed are those adapted to the latter system` When the' owner wishes to sell yhis motor vehicle; he' displays to the purchaser his abstract of title asevidence of', ownership; andl itthe purchaser desires' to continue the abstract service, a record of the sale ismade in the` abstract ony a -blank form `provided thereimand also on a separate form whichA is forwarded1 to theissuing company.'v Atter proper investigation" the transfer is ratied bythe company and a vsuitable record of this' fact is preferably insertedin or attached to the'abstraet. inthe precise form- CIK ot the system disclosed herein, the company at this stage forwards to the new owner :i certiiicate adapted to be attached to the last record of sale, the certificate stating the ex tent of the coinpanysI ratification of the transaction. Suitable forms are provided for a series of sales, so that the abstract, if successive owners utilize the service, pre sents a continuous cha-in of title together with suitable verification of individual transactions by the company.

Provision may also be made for entering on the abstract any transactions of im portance to the title or possession of the vehicle, such as liens, change of numbered parts, or the like; and in the preferred form suitable blanlr spaces are provided on the back of each sales record, so that the 4purchaser can ascertain, by an inspection of the back of the record of sale to him, eiractly what encumberances or alterations the vehicle has been subjected to up to the time of purchase by him. A similar record may be made on the back of the sales record sent to the company` so that the company may enter on its records the transactions affecting title or possession which are noted on the abstract. ln furtberance` of this system, blanks may be provided in the abstract for notifying the company when a lien is placed on the vehicle, this process assuring the mortgagee that any purchaser utilizing the abstract service will be duly `notified of the existence of such a lien. Complementary lien discharge notices may `also be provided for notifying the company in similar man-- ner when a. lien has been discharged, the signature of the mortgagee on such notice serving as verification of its authenticity,

Up to this point l have referred to records of sales as being included among the forms embodied in the abstract.

formal bill of sale, one copy of which is retained in the abstract, and the other, signed in duplicate. is forwarded to the company.

ln addition to the convenience which thisv theory of registration of title rather than upon the basis of insurance, Fig. 1 shows a form of abstract which has been found thoroughly useful and convenient in practice.

l have found .it` 'highly useful to employ as such record ja 'lf his abstract consists of sheets 10, 11, 12, 18, 14 and 15, together with the front cover 16 and the back cover 17, the latter preferably throughout the years of hard usage to which it may be subjected. The lirst sheet 10 has imprinted upon the front page thereof a. certiiicate of onwership 18, and a detailed description 19 of important features of the motor vehicle, which may be embodied in the certiiicate of ownership. l

Vllhere an insurance system is employed, this certificateimay be in the form of an insurance guarantee; but in the form shown it is in the nature of a certiiicate that the owner has warranted to the issuing company that he basa right to possession of the motor vehicle, and that it is free from encumbrances except as stated. Obviously, a great variety of other formsof certiiicate may be substituted for this one, depending upon the general business scheme which is followed, without affecting the organization of documents in the abstract which constitutes my invention.

Below the certificate of ownership are the forms on which the successive sales `are entered. lIn the arrangement shown, these forms consist of bills of sale 2O and 21, each being in any desired form and preferably including an acknowledgement. `The bills also should contain a reference to the abstract and to the liens and encumbrances mentioned therein, if any, so that thc abstract in sul stance embodied in the contract, an important feature from a legal point of view. The bills of sale are numbered successively, and are permanentlybound in the abstract.

being relatively heavy to protect the abstract The back page of sheet 10 is shown in Fig. i

f2'. This is divided into a series of forms 22, and 24. each located on the back of one of the forms on the front of said sheet. lThese `forms are so arraugedthat the owner of the motor vehiclecan enter thereon Vd etails of transactions affecting the title, possession or condition `of the vehicle; so that eachpurchaser will have a record on the back of his particular bill of sale or sales record, of such transactions. The forms shown in Fig. 2 are each divided into two portions.v one being adapted for the entry of liens and the other for the entry of numbered parts which are replaced. i

ln are shown specimens of one type of notice which may be employed in connection with the imposition and` discharge of liens. 'These notices are detachable, and are successively numbered so that they may be removed and forwarded to the issuing` company as liens are imposed or discharged. ln the particular arrangement disclosed, lien notices 26 and 27 are vertically aligned on the left half of the sh et, which in the arrangement of Fig. 1 is sheet 14; and

the notices are preferably rendered sepa-l rable from the sheet without difliculty by means of lines or perforations or incisions 28a. A corresponding series of lien discharge notices 28, 29 and 30 are imprinted on the right-hand half ofthe sheet and are similarly detachable. The notices may be numbered serially from bottom to top of the sheet for convenience in detaching them in order; and a second sheet 15 of such notices may be employed, similar in every way vto that of Fig. 8, except that the numbers of the notices on sheet 15 are in sequence to those on sheet 14.

Duplicate records of sales are preferably embodied directly in the abstract, this being accomplished in. the form shown by employing sheet 11 which may be an exact duplicate of sheet 10, both as to the front and rear pages of said sheet, except for certain changes. indicated in Fig. 5. For one thing, the bills of sale or other records contained` on the front of sheet l1 may be marked duplicate as in the bill of sale 31 shown in Fig. 5. Furthermore, it has been found highly advantageous from a legal point of view. to embody in the duplicate bill of sale, which is forwarded. to the issuing company, a warranty on the part of the purchaser requesting the continuance of abstract service, or by the vendor, to the effect that the vehicle is free from encumbrances except as statedk on the rear of the duplicate bill of sale carrying the warranty. By this rmethod, the company is in possession of a warranty as to encumbrances on the vehicle which will enable it, and those employing` its service, to recover damages from any purchaser or vendor making false entries as to encumbrances or other transactions affecting the title or condition of the vehicle.

It is of course understood that the duplicate bills of sale or other sales records carried by sheet ll are detachable therefrom, as by employing suitable lines of perforations 32 between the various instruments on sheet l1. Xhile I have described sheet l1 as being` a substantial duplication of sheet l0, and while this has been found useful in practice, it will be readily understood that my invention is in no respect confined to this particular arrangement. For example, the two sales records need not necessarily be substantial duplicates of each other, nor need they both consist of bills of sale in the broadest phase of my invention. Furthermore, the specific warranty 33 may be embodied in any suitable form, and need not be separate from the rest of the hill of sale or sales record. although this form is shownv in Fig. 5.

The certificate of ownership 34; which is issued, to subsequent owners is shown in Fig.

4L. This certificate forms in effect a part of the abstract. and under the scheme of doing business `heretofore outlined, I have found it convenient to employ a certificate" adapted to be attached physically to the abstract, rather than one permanently bound in the abstract, as the latter arrangement entails some practical diiculties of a business nature. I have therefore provided this eertificatc with a marginal stripe of adhesive 35, and have formed on the original bills of sale 20 and 21 a suitable marginal space 36 to which ,the certificate may be affixed by means of the adhesive, without obscuring the sales record. 1t will be apparent, however, that a great many different methods of embodying the certificate in the abstract can be substituted for the one disclosed.

The certificate 3st is governed as to its form by the extent to which the issuing company protects the owner. The form shown` is in. substance a certificate as to they company records and the warranty of the preceding owner, being part of a recording system rather than an insurance system, as heretofore indicated. However, the certiiicate might with equal facility be adapted to an insurance scheme. y

1f desired a suitable blank form 3T shown in Fig. 6 maybe employed for a record of insurance, and a form 38 for a record of miscellaneous transactions. the abstract shown in Fig. l having these forms locatedk on the back of the cover 16.

While the `general scheme of business has heretofore been set forth, the precise method of manipulating the specific form shown will be reviewed to insure clarity. lVhen a motor vehicle owner applies for an abstract. he files a suitable application; and upon investigation an abstract issent to him with the certificate of ownership 1S suitably filled out and signed. Upon placing` any. lien on the car. lien notice 25 .is filled out, signed by the mortgagor and mortgagee, and mailed to the company. An entry of thelien also made in the suitable space in the blank record 23 on` both sheet l0 and sheet lll. On discharging such l ien, the discharge notice 2S is detached and forwarded to the company. and a suitable notation is made on the forms 1li/Then any numbered part of the vehicle is replaced. that fact is also entered on both forms 23; as otherwise the purchaser. com paring the numbers of the various parts with those on the certificate of ownership record section 18, would refuse purchase because of the discrepancy.

Then the motor vehicle is to be sold', bill of sale No. l, indicated by numeral 20` in Fig. i. and the duplicate bill of sale No. 1; (3i in Fig. 5) are both filled out and signed by both parties, acknowledged by them before a notary public, and the warranty is signed by the vendee, and if considered desirable, bythe vendor. Tbedupiicate bill of sale 31 is then detached and sent to the company. Aft-er checking up thevarious features of the transaction, which may in clude suitable investigation in the ofiice of the Secretary of State, the certificate shown in Fig. ff is properly filled out and executed, and is forwarded to the purchaser, who pastes it over bill of sale No. l (2O in .F ig. l). The transaction is now complete, and the new owner follows the saine procedure.

It will be apparent that the adoption of my invention will increase so greatly the difficulties attendant upon the sale of stolen motor vehicles that it is believed that such thefts will be reduced to a minimum; and my invention furthermore provides prospective purchasers with an effective and practical means of protection against the purchase of motor vehicles which have been stolen or upon which undisclosed liens have been placed.

It is believed that eventually a comprehensive system for the compulsory recording of encumbrances on motor vehicles will be adopted in all States; and further, that various State laws effecting systems of insurance will be altered to permit greater latitude in the insurance of purchasers of motor vehciles than is possible under the laws and recording systems now in existence. My invention will be equally applicable to such improved conditions. However, the particular arrangement shown has `been calculated t0 meet numerous dificultiesin the present legal situation; and the solution of these difliculties by the devising of a practicable arrangement and combination of forms in the abstract has been an important object of my invention.

`While I have indicated the `principal features of my invention and in connection with the detailed description have shown where various modifications may be made, it will be apparent that a number of other changes and variations can readily be employed within the scope of my invention; and 1 do not consider such invention to be limited to the disclosure herein, its true scope being indi` cated by the following claims.

While I have used the expression title certificate or cccertificate of title in the claims for convenience, it will be understood that these expressions are not limited to the type of certificate shown in the illustrations, but are intended to refer generically tov all certicates containing a statement of the issuing company bearing upon a right to posn session or ownership, whether the certificate forms a part of a recording, insurance or other `plan of conducting business.

I claim:

1. A title document for motor vehicles providing in permanent consecutive form evidence of the chain of title and adapted for retention by the owner and direct transfer to each successive purchaser or transferee, comprising permanently connected successive transfer record forms, and separably attached successive duplicate transfer record forms, each corresponding to one of the permanent transfer forms, separably attached lien notices and separably attached lieny discharge notices corresponding to the individual lien notices7 said notices being adapted for forwarding to the recording agency.` v

2. title document for motor vehicles providing in permanent consecutive form evidence of the chain of title and adapted for retention by the owner and direct transfer to each successive purchaser or transferee, comprising permanently connected successive transfer record forms, and separably attached successive duplic-atetransfer record forms, `each corresponding to one of the permanent transfer forms, separably attached lien notices and separably attached lien discharge notices corresponding` to the individual lien notices, said notices being adapted for forwarding to the recording agency, the transfer forms being provided with properly designated spaces for entry of liens and discharges with definite reference to the lien and lien discharge notices.

3. A. title document for motor vehicles providing in permanent consecutive form evidence of the chain of title and adapted` for retentionbythe owner and direct transfer to eachy successive purchaser or transL feree. comprising a permanently `connected 'certificate of title to the original purchaser,

permanently connected successive transfer record forms, and separably attached. successive duplicate transfer record forms each corresponding to one. of` thel permanent transfer forms, in combination with origi.

nally separate title certificates correspond ing to the permanent transfer record forms and adapted to be attached thereto after issuance by the recording office in accordance with the corresponding duplicate transfer form. i l

4. A. permanent consecutive motor vehicle title record document designed for retention by the owner` ofthe vehicle and immediate transfer to successive purchasers, consisting of permanently connected sheets., one sheet by the owner of the vehicle and immediate transfer to successive purchasers, consisting of permanently connected sheets, one sheet carrying permanently connected printed 'forms including a forni of certilicate of title for the original purchaser and forms of recorCls of transl'er to subsequent purchasers, another sheet having separable duplicate record Aforn'is corresponding substantially to the permanent transfer forins, and. another sheet having separable lien and lien lis- 10 charge notice forms, in combination With originally separate title certicates for Subsequent purchasers adapted to be' attached nto individual permanent transfer forms. 

